The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1887-02-23

ever.
But, as I already hinted in the first sem
tence Of this sermon. nothing can be more
beautiful than the figures of smoke on clear
sky. You can see what you Will in the con.
tour Of this volatile vapor, now enchanteo
castles, now troops of horsemen, now BAN
nered procession, now winged couriers. now
black angel Of wrath under spear OF the
sunshine turned to an angel OF light, ana
uow from horizon to horizon the air 10 q
picture gallery filled with masterpieces OF
which God is the artist, morning clouds OF
smoke born in the sunrise, and evening
clouds Of smoke laid in the FURNISHED sepul.
chres Of the sunset.
The beauty of the trans6gured smoke is
divine symbol Of the beauty Of the Church.
The fairest of all the fair is she. Do not call
those prosecutors Of whom I spoke the
Church. They are the PARASITES OF the
Church. not the Church itself. Her mission
is to cover the earth with supernatural
gladness. to open all the prison doors, to
balSam all the wounds, to moss all the graves.
to burn up the night in the firepiare OF great
morning to change iron handouts into dla-
monded wristlets, to turn the whole race
around. and whereas it faced death, com.
man6ing it: tRight about face for heaveni"
According to the number of the spires of the
churches in all our cities. towns and neigh
borhoods. are me good homes. the worldly
prosperities, and the pure morals, and the
happy souls.
Meet me at any denot the world over, and
with my eyes closed take me by the hand and
lead me so that my feet will not stumble, and
without my once looking down. or looking
on the level, take me TO some high roof or
tower and let me see the tops of the churches,
and I will tell you the promotion Of suicides,
of arsons, of murders, of thefts. According as
the churches are numerous are the crimes
few. According as the churches are few
the crimes are numerous. The most beautiful
organization the world ever saw or ever will
see is the much maligned Church. the friend
of all good, the foe Of all evil, flair as the
her author. beautiful in her mission, the
heroine Of the centuries. the bride OF Christ,
the queen Of the nations. There are hum
dreds Of kindly institutions, some car
ing for inebriates, some for the crippled,
some for the imbecile, some for the
mi>led, some for the blind but the Church is
the mother of all these kindly institutions
There are asylums, American. or English, or
Scotch, or Irish, or French. or Germany, or
Italian, but the Church spreads her mantle
over all these, and will yet spread it over all
nations. Her gates are beautiful, her
songs are beautiful, her prayers are
beautiful, her couvocatlons are beautl-
full, her work is beautiful. All Kinrs and
warriors will yet bow down at her altars all
chains Of serfdom be shattered against her
doorstep, all nations will yet fellow her lead
ing. How amiable are thy tabernacles! How
sacred thy altarsl How glorious thy audito-
ruins! So graceful, so aspiring, so grand,
and rolling on, and rolling up, we cry ont
in regard to her: "Who is she that cometh
out of the wilderness like pillars of smokes"
Men may desecrate it, as Cromwell when
he stabbed his cavalry horses in st. Paul's
Cathedral; or break off the image OF Christ,
did Tho ipopOcloSto in York Minister.
hurl against it august literary antipathies,as
did Gibbon; or plot its overthrow. as do some
in every community whose pride and hate
and debauchery are reproved by the Ten
Commandments which it thunders, and
the Sermon on tho Mount which
it breathes. But it will stand
as long as the earth stands, the same unique,
and wonder-working. beatific, and miracu-
lous thing for which God decreed it. Small
wits tax their brain to say things that will
put her at disadvantage, but many Of them
will send for its condolence when dying, and
their children will be gathered up under
its benedictions after the parental curse
has been removed. Through her gates
will march all tie influences for good
that shall ever reach our world. Take her
membership as a mass, not speaking of the
acknowledged exceptions, they are the no.
blest, grandest. kiudest, best men and women
of the ages But for them the earth would
long ago have been burned-out volcano.
They have been the salt that has kept the
human race from putrefaction insufferable
either to human or angelic olfactories. You
ISLANDERS about the Church of Christ, an in
stitution which, far from being what it
ought to be and never pretending to be per-
feet is five hundred times better than any
other institution that tho world ever saw or
ever dreamt Of. The highest honor ever had,
and the highest honor l shall ever receive,
and the high honor ever want is to have
nv name on her records as member At
her altars repented. At her sacraments l
believed. In her service let me die. From
her doors let me be buried. Oh, Church of
God! Thou home Of the righteous! Thou har-
Dor from tempest! Thou refuge for the wearyl
Thou lighthouse Of many nations! Thou
tyre Of heaven! could kiss thy very dust
with ecstasy of affection.
For her my tears shall fall,
For her my prayers ascend,
To her nv tolls aud cares be given
Til tolls and cares shall end"
"Perfumed SMOKE" says Solomon, in the
words following my text. Not like the fumes
coughed up from the throat Of a steam-pipe,
or poisoned with the gases of chemical facto.
ries, or floating in black wrath from the con-
flagration of homesteads, OF sulphurous from
blazing batteries, but sweet as a burning
grove Of cinnamon or jungle of sassafras,
or the odors of temple censer. "Who is this
that cometh out OF the wilderness like pillars
Of smoke. perfumed with myrrh and frank
incense?" Hear it, men and women every
where. that the advance of the genuine
Church Of Christ means peace for all nations.
Victor Hugo, in his book entitled NINETY
three" says: "Nothing calmer than smoke
but nothing more startling. There are peace
full smokes and there are evil ones. The thick
ness and color Of q line of smoke make the
whole difference between war and peace be-
tween fraternity and hatred. The whole hap
piness Of man or his complete MISERY'S some
times expressed in this thin vapor which tho
win scatters at will" The great French
man was right, but I 60 further and say that
as the Kingdom of God advances like pillars
of smoke, the black volumes belchiug from
batteries of war and pouring out from port
holes of ships will vanish from the sky.
A distinguished General Of the late war
told me recently that Abraham Lincoln pro-
posed to avoid our civil conflict by purchase
of all the slaves of the South and setting them
free. He calculated what would be rea-
sonabie price for them, and, when the num-
Der Of millions of dollars that would be re-
quired for such purpose was announced,
the proposition was secuted, and the North
South would not have accepted it
if made But" said my military
friend. "the war went on and just the num-
Der OF millions of dollars that Mr. Lincoln
calculated would have been enough to make
a reasonable purchase of oil the slaves, we're
spent in war, besides all the precious lives
that were hurled away in the two hundred
and fifty battles" In other words, there
ought to be Some other way for men to set
hatchery.
Inc J.nurch or ton WIFI yer boc0rne Jno